Beyond, Betwix, and Between
by Renara
Summary: How do you know when to stop fighting? When does cowardice become bravery? Is blood really thicker than water? And what is right anyway? Youko X OC.
1. First World

Summery: In Spirit World, there is a company called WDEC. They employ humans that have the unique ability to open the walls between worlds. When the Legendary Theif gets wind of these 'Gate Keepers', he thinks one thing: Cha-ching! 

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, but I'm slowly getting over it. Fanfiction helps.

* * *

A slow, sullen red sun peeked over the mountainous horizon. A young girl with hair as flame red as the sunrise watched its slow climb into the sky. Uncurling from the cramped position she had slept in, she slowly stood up, wincing from the cramps fifteen hours in the same position had given her. Standing on the tips of her toes and wrapping her hands around a branch high above her head got rid of the worst of the cramps, but a few stubborn ones remained in her neck and shoulders. Rotating her head slowly, from side to side, she thought idly, 

'Next time I'm sleeping in a tree, I'm gonna find one with bigger branches.'

Peeking down past her toes as they rested on the sturdy branch she had spent her night on, her thoughts turned to the hard task of getting out of a tree that had been much easier getting into.

'Hmmmm. Do I want to do this the slow and hard way, or the painful and easy way?'

A sudden gust made the decision for her, as it caused several springy branches to whip her in the back. Giving a surprised yelp, the girl none-too-gracefully fell out of the tree, falling ten feet to a ground that was blessedly covered in springy leaves. She landed with a thump and rolled several feet before the rock pile she had used to get into the tree the night before brought her to a sudden stop. Laying still for a few seconds and moaning a bit, she experimentally moved everything while simultaneously trying to restart her heart. After making sure nothing was broken, she painfully climbed to her feet.

'Forget coffee, falling out of a tree will wake you up much faster.'

Sighing and rubbing her back, the girl took a moment to try and remember from which way she had come last night. 'Let's see... if I was traveling with the sun to my back last night, and assuming the sun sets West here, then I'd have to travel towards the sun this morning to continue going East.'

She knew that West and East were only relative terms, but she needed something to base her inner compass on. Of course, there was always the possibility that this place's sun followed a corkscrew path instead of the usual 'set on one side of the horizon, rise on the other', but she preferred to not think about this.

'Right, into the rising sun!'

She set off at a slow march that she could keep up for hours on end without rest, even with a sore back. A large part of her days were spent simply walking from place to place, but in her opinion there was no other way to explore properly, and exploring was what she was payed to do. As she walked, she reviewed the events of the previous night that had led to her staying in a tree.

* * *

She had gotten into this world easily enough, but staying in it proved to be the hard part. Less than an hour's walk had brought her to a small village that blended so well into the surounding forest, she didn't notice it until nearly all of the village's inhabitants had noticed her. Unfortunantly for the poor girl, these particular people were not friendly natives. They quickly drove her out of their village and comensed to chasing her for what felt like hours but was probably only thirty minuets or so. Luckily she was in great shape (from all the exploring she did in relation to her job) so she was able to elude the natives until she was far enough away from them to seek a hiding place. Quickly climbing a convienent rock pile and leaping into the tree she had winded up spending the night in, she managed to lose her persuers. Not daring to come out of the tree again, she had setled into a position that -at the time- had seemed pretty comfortable. Staying out of sight in the tree's branches, she had plenty of time to study the language of the native peoples, as they were constantly passing underneath her tree in vain attemps to find her. They whispered to each other in voices that spoke something that sounded like a language from her home world known as Spanish, but it had a twist of something that sounded a bit Greek. Listening carefully to the people and taking mental notes, she used her skills as an accomplished liguist to obtain a vague idea of what they were talking about. It turned out that they apparently thought she was something akin to what they called a 'deasemn', an evil spirit of trickery that had been troubling them. All this was based on the assumption that they were speaking something derived from a bizare mix of Greek and Spanish. But a lifetime of deciphering languages as part of her job gave her confidence that her translation was correct.

* * *

Now, walking in what was hopefully the opposite direction of the village, she briefly wondered what the original 'deasemn' was. She knew for a fact that it wasn't a fellow explorer, as the Coordinance Office of the World Determination and Exploration Company (whom she worked for), wouldn't give her a world that had already been documented and explored. It could possibly be a fictional spirit, or a local myth. Some cultures liked to blame their misfortunes and downfalls on spiritual scapegoats instead of themselves. Yes, that was probably it, a little fictional scapegoat. Nothing to worry about. 

She walked through the woods, not needing to fight her way through brush because there was none. All that could be seen were the straight, solid trunks of trees that resembled pines in their structure, but maples in their leaves. Patches of sunlight filtered through the gently waving branches, dappling the ground in spots that could almost be made into pictures, if you cared to study them long enough. Every now and then, she'd find herself at the crest of a gently sloping hill, allowing her to see over the tall trees and into the mountain-filled distance. Oddly, the peaks of these mountains were not snow-capped. The day was pleasantly warm, with an odd cool breeze finding its way through the trunks of the old trees.

She walked for a good time, on into the afternoon, and finally into the evening. When night found its way through the sky, the girl was incredibly hungry.

'Well, I've been here enough hours now, and I guess I've seen enough of this place to write my report. I must remember to advise against casual touring...'

Coming to a stop, she sighed and squared her shoulders. Calling deep down into herself, she summoned the 'power', for lack of a better term, that allowed her to cross worlds. This skill was, of course, mandatory for all those in her line of work, as was the talent to decipher the languages of those in the worlds they visited.

She brought her hands together and concentrate fiercely on where she desired to go (her office in Spirit World), her concentration helped by the thought of getting some warm food. Moving suddenly and with purpose, she dipped her hands into what she and those like her called 'the Ether', and pulled at the very strands of the fabric of the universe. Twisting them expertly into a circular portal, she prepared for the hard part that was manifesting her creation of ether and strand. Grasping the edges of her portal, she tugged it out of the Ether and into the material plain.

Materializing in front of her, a shimmering blue vortex appeared. Smiling to herself, the girl stepped through the portal and into her office, and not stopping a beat, turned back around and shoved her portal back into the Ether, where she then disentangled it.

Two seconds later the door to her office burst open and a young man with the same flame-red hair as the girl stuck his head in.

"Hey, welcome back!"

"Hi Finn. Took you awhile to get here this time." She teased him.

Finn stuck his tongue out at her and stepped into the office.

"So how was it?"

"Ng. I don't recommend it for the tourist industry."

Finn raised his eyebrows. "Hostiles, huh? Were they human?"

She shrugged. "As far as I can tell. They looked a little like Latin Americans."

Finn grinned and teasingly said, "They think you're a demon again?"

She brightened a little. "No, this time they thought I was a spirit of mischief. Finally, I little variety."

Finn laughed. "Well that's what you get for going around with your hair on fire."

She made a face. "You're not gonna let me forget that incident anytime soon, huh?"

Finn snickered. "At least we knew they were friendly when they tried to put you out."

"By pushing me into a lake! When I can't swim!"

"Well, they didn't know that! And besides, if you just had the good sense to dye your hair like me..."

She snorted. "Please! You know I can't stand make-up, let alone hair dye!"

"You'll sing a different tune when you get grey hair!"

"Little do you know, I plan to die young." Raising her nose into the air, Evvy strutted out the door and down the hall, leaving her younger brother laughing in her office.

* * *

Well, that's chapter 1. Please, share your thoughts on it.  



	2. How It Happened

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, so sue me. No, wait, I didn't mean that!!

* * *

Evvy had been five when it had first happened. She had been sitting at the kitchen table, next to her little brother Finn, who was three. She had been drawing a picture of an apple for her teacher. Sense bringing in a real apple would never work (she'd eat it before she ever got to school) she was trying a picture instead. At least she wouldn't wind up eating it. 

When all of a sudden, her hand disappeared, leaving the crayon it had been holding up to drop to the table. She looked at where her hand had been, and then over a Finn, who was still scribbling with a vengeance at a piece of construction paper. Looking back at where her hand wasn't, she flexed her fingers. She could still feel them, but not the table underneath, or even the currents of air across her hand. What she could feel was cloth, but it had a special feel to it, like the wool carpet upstairs on a winter night, all statically. But it didn't feel bad, it felt right. Just then Finn looked over, and seeing that his dear sister was lacking a hand, burst into tears, crying loudly. Evvy tried pulling her hand back, and it suddenly appeared, right in time for Evvy's mother to rush into the room, demanding to know what was wrong with Finn.

It was then that Evvy lied to her mother for the first time.

"I dunno."

Finn grew suddenly quite and stared wide-eyed at his sister. Making the first intellectual leap of his life, he realized that Evvy didn't want Mommy to know what happened.

"I'm hungry!" He said instead.

"I swear, sometimes you are so demanding." Their mother said in exasperation, but she was smiling while she said it.

And so their mother lived in complete ignorance as Evvy began experimenting with what she had thought was her 'magical power'. Not to be left out, Finn had said he would tell Mom if Evvy didn't teach him how to do it, or at least let him watch. So for two years, Evvy got better and better at making first one hand, then both go to 'the other place'. She could never figure out how to make anything else disappear, though.

* * *

Finn was five when it first happened to him. He was so excited that he ran to find his sister, squealing all the way that, 'He did it! He did it!', leaving their mother very confused. Evvy, instead of being disappointed that 'her' special ability wasn't so special anymore, was thrilled that her baby brother could finally share in the magic. 

So Evvy taught Finn all she had figured out, and together they began experimenting with this other place. It was Finn that first managed to make a portal. He had sat still for nearly an hour, a frown of concentration on his seven-year-old face. Evvy was nearby, thinking about what to get Mom for her birthday, when suddenly Finn shrieked,

"Evvy! Help!!"

Startled out of her musings, Evvy rushed over, and seeing that Finn's hands were not there, quickly stuck her hands in the other place as well. Using touch, she found out what Finn had been working on all that time. It felt like a woven hoop of strings.

"What did you do?" She whispered, terrified that Finn had broken a rule of the other place by messing with the fabric.

"It felt right." He said simply, also in a whisper. The hoop vibrated under their hands.

"Now what?" Finn asked, but then they both knew the answer.

They began to tug at the hoop, putting all their nine-year-old and seven-year-old muscle into it. Finally, the hoop came out of the other place, and hung shimmering, blue, and iridescent in front of them, a foot off the ground.

Just then, they heard the key turn in the lock on their front door. Shooting looks of terror to each other, they lunged together at the portal, trying to shove it back. Instead, they both ended up with their front halves through it. They found the front of themselves hanging a foot off the ground in a dense jungle, looking at a surprised, blue lizard. The lizard said, "Meep!" In a cat's voice, and hurried away. After trading astonished looks, they used the ground as leverage and hoisted themselves back through the portal as one, just in time to hear their mother call their names.

"I'll put it back, you go tell Mom I'm in the bathroom!" Evvy whispered to her shocked brother. He nodded mutely and scampered away.

Evvy quickly felt for the edges of the hoop, and finding them, braced herself and began pushing it backwards, all the while whispering, "Go back, go back, please go back..."

And, as suddenly as it had appeared, the portal was gone.

They had kept the hoop stored in the other place for a little while, having fun bringing it out from time to time and sticking their heads through it. They found that the hoop couldn't be moved from where Finn had originally created it, but the alien jungle was enough to satisfy them even with a limited view. It was too small for them to climb through, but even they didn't know if they'd have been brave enough to try. What if they couldn't get back? But eventually Evvy told Finn to get rid of it, so he could make another one and show her how to.

* * *

Then, six years later, a stranger approached Evvy as she was walking home from school. He stopped her on the sidewalk and said, "I know who and what you are, Evvy. I know people that can teach you and your brother to do things with your power you've never dreamed of. Call me if you're interested." And in a flash of blue skin that was mostly concealed under his rather large coat and cowboy hat, he pressed a card into her hand and hurried away. 

All that week, after telling Finn about it, she pondered what to do. Curiosity ate away at her until finally, deciding that it couldn't hurt to just call them, she waited until her mother had left the house and dialed the number on the card. But instead of hearing ringing, she just heard an interment clicking sound.

Then, right next to her, a portal opened. A blue-skinned ogre stepped through, but even odder than the ogre were his three-piece suit and thick black glasses. He paused a moment to straighten his tie, then looked critically at Evvy. He looked her up and down, and said, "Ah, the newest recruit! Awfully young, aren't you?"

At this point, Evvy made a sound like a mouse being strangled and quickly turned to run and find her brother. The ogre followed her out into the living room and said, "I'll just wait here, shall I?" and preceded to make himself at home on their couch.

"Finn! Finn!" Evvy shouted repeatedly, hoping that Finn hadn't taken off on one of his spontaneous basketball trips again. She didn't want to deal with this on her own.

"What?" Asked Finn, his head poking out of his room.

Evvy made the strangled mouse sound again. "We have a visitor."

Finn frowned. "What?"

"Come and see." Evvy said faintly as she turned to go back to the living room.

Still frowning, Finn followed Evvy into the living room, where he paused to take a good look at their guest, then preceded to sit on the floor, hard.

"Ah! Hello there! And you'll be master Finn then, yes?" Said the ogre as he rose from the couch.  
He walked over to Finn and held out his hand. Finn craned his head back from his position on the floor, then slowly and suspiciously took the ogre's extended hand. Instead of pulling Finn up, the ogre simply shook hands, with him standing and Finn on the floor. At this time it occurred to Evvy that this ogre was hardly as tall as Finn, an inch or so shorter than herself. This made him seem less threatening somehow. Turning away from Finn, the ogre came to shake hands with Evvy. As he shook her hand, he introduced himself.

"Hello Ma'am, Sir," with a nod to Finn, "My name is Klaud Ogre. I am the head of the World Determination and Exploration Co. I am here to, well, offer you two a job."

* * *

From there, it had taken off. Evvy and Finn accepted Mr. Ogre ("no, call my Klaud")'s offer, and became the fourth and fifth exploration units of the WDEC. As far as their mother was concerned, Evvy and Finn had been accepted to a prestigious-looking boarding school, and she now only to see them every-other weekend and on holiday breaks. 

And so, for two years Evvy and Finn had worked for the WDEC, being paid in room and board and also in a substantial amount of the currency used in Spirit World, which had more interesting things to buy anyway. For the first six months of their stay they were trained by the first exploration unit the WDEC had ever recruited, a nice, 50-year-old African American who, besides having orange eyes, looked to be about 25. "You'll find that traveling between worlds does wonders for your health." He had told them with a wink.

According to Klaud, the WDEC had been started by his grandfather, and that only twenty humans with talents such as theirs had been recruited in all that time, with the first fifteen either dead or retired.

"Dead?" Finn had asked, wide-eyed.

"Ermmm, yes. Not all things in all the worlds are friendly. Which is why you are being trained to open portals faster than would be normally required. Also, my assistant will be teaching you some basic self-defense..."

All in all, the last two years had been the best of Evvy's life. But things were about to change, and Evvy's life was about to be rearranged again.

* * *

Please press the pretty blue button you see below. Have a nice day! 


	3. Ruler of All Spirit World

Tear Gems Falling- Thanks for reviewing! Here's the next chapter, I hope you like it! 

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, and even if I said I did, I doubt their lawyers are reading this. Right? (sweatdrop)

* * *

"Will all exploration units for the WDEC please report to Koenma's office. Thank you." 

Evvy and Finn paused over their dinners in the employee café. They exchanged surprised glances, then quickly got up and abandoned their meals. They had never been to Koenma's office, but there were helpful signs all over the place, so they found it relatively easily. They arrived to find two other units already there. A 37-year-old black-haired, pale-skinned, red-eyed woman named Dian, and a 42-year-old man, Max, with brown hair, tan skin, and eyes that were black through and through. Dian nodded gravely at them, then went back to looking expectantly at the door through which Koenma, the ruler of all Spirit World, was supposed to enter. Max simply ignored them, all attention on the door. Leaning against the back wall, Finn and Evvy joined them. A few seconds later Jacob, their instructor and the oldest unit in the group, came in, wearing blue jeans and a pajama top. Looking slightly abashed, Jacob took the remaining chair.

They all waited patently, for the first five minutes. Then Finn got kinda fidgety. Evvy wanted to sit down, but there was no way that the Ruler of Spirit World's first impression of her would be taken with her butt on the floor.

A few more minutes later, a deep, scratchy voice could be heard on the other side of Koenma's door.

"But sir! They've been waiting for nearly ten minutes already! Shouldn't you get out there?"

"Shut up Ogre! I can clearly see that you posses no management finesse. The first rule of asserting your authority is to make them wait! Now be quite!"

Evvy was confused. The first voice was obviously one of an ogre (Klaud had told them that all ogres shared the same last name, but when questioned on it he had coughed and muttered something about a legal mix-up, and then changed the subject). But what about the second voice? It sounded like a child's. Or really, more like a spoiled brat.

A few seconds later, the Ruler of Spirit World walked through the door, but nobody knew quite what to make of him. He hopped onto his dest chair, then fixed them all with a critical stare that looked very out-of place on his toddler's face.

"Sorry for the wait. Now, I've called you all here to discuss a very important issue that has arisen in Makai. You are all familiar with what happens to worlds you clear for inhabitancy, correct?"

Nobody moved an inch, so Koema answered his own question.

"Yes, they become the residence of Spirit World's growing populace, or possibly prison camps for the more dreary worlds. When a culture is moved to a world- involving a long and hard process we won't get into- all its native art and treasures go with it."

Evvy was familiar with this part. While she and the other four units held open an extremely large portal, a culture's buildings, monuments, and just about everything else important to them was sent through to their new, empty home. This involved the assistance of telekinetic individuals from the Department of Tele-studies, who also worked as a team to lift entire buildings together.  
It was very trying and slow work, uprooting and re-planting entire cultures, and the projects usually lasted for weeks at a time. Luckily for Evvy and Finn, they had only to endure three such projects so far.

"Well," Koenma's baby face grew even more serious, "someone has been stealing their treasures." Seeing all the looks of dumbfounded confusion, Koenma assumed it had arisen from what he had just said and so explained,"I know, I know. The entire purpose of moving these people was to give them room to expand, free of influence. So it should be impossible to get to them..." Koenma frowned, suddenly angry. "Unless we have a mole in our Portal Network."

The Portal Network was aptly named. Created before even King Enma's rule, it was the one sure way for someone to get to everywhere from anywhere, as long as they had a Coordinator on their side. Coordinators determined when, where, for how long, and with what destination each world's portal, or World Gate, would appear. Humans like Evvy and Finn were able to get through the walls of worlds without using the 'door' that was the single portal every world possessed of its own accord. But they all knew what could happen if an individual had access to every world's Gate. They'd be untraceable, uncatchable, and if they were evil... they could get away with anything they wanted. Unless... Sometimes Finn was able to detect portals, which was how he unerringly showed up every time Evvy came home from assignment.

Koenma sighed. "Which is why I've enlisted your help. You lot don't need the World Gates to get to the worlds, and I've been told that a select member of this group," His gaze focused on Finn, "can detect portals, and possibly trace them."

Finn turned beat red. "Erm, well sir, I'll try my best, sir..."

Koenma nodded. "Good. Once you locate the world the marauders are currently in, I'll send in a team of my elite to stop them, along with you and your sister. You two are to make sure they don't escape through a portal."

"And just how are they going to do that?" Inquired Dian.

"Easy. Finn will locate any portal that opens, and Evvy will close it."

It was Evvy's turn to blush. "I-I'm not sure I can, sir, I've only done it once, and it was just a practical joke..." Max scowled.

Evvy had a fondness for practical jokes, and so as a way of meeting the other units when she first arrived at the WDEC, Evvy had played a joke on each of them. Dian got the sudden appearance of a small portal over her head that had dumped ten gallon's worth of sea water on her, after she had just taken a shower. Jacob had his brown hair dye replaced with pink one morning, and so had to wear a baseball cap for the rest of the day. But for the one unit that had been the rudest, and had the biggest ego, of the group, Max, Evvy had done a very long and much more subtle joke. Taking one of her vacation days, Evvy sat in her office with a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door. She stuck her hands into the Ether and concentrated on one thing: Stopping Max's portals. All day long, try after try, Max couldn't get to the world WDEC had assigned for him to explore. Becoming increasingly frustrated, Max eventually had to break down and ask for help. Evvy had made sure that Finn would be the only help available on that particular day. Arriving in time to see Max's admittance of needing help, Evvy was also treated to an excellent performance by Finn, who had by that time figured out what she had been up to all day. And so he put poor Max through all the motions of explaining just what was the problem, just what he had done about the problem, and just what might solve the problem (all the while, Max was getting redder and redder at being treated like a child). Then, catching Evvy's eye, Finn asked Max to go ahead and try to open a portal. Max, fed up by then and not expecting to succeed, fell over backwards when his careless jerk brought into existence a very sloppy portal, which then proceeded to dump cold sea water on him. Max never quite forgave Evvy and Finn after that, but sense he was never much fun anyway, they didn't really mind. As for Jacob and Dian, they appreciated the planning that went into their jokes, and after getting Evvy to swear she'd never, ever, EVER do it again, they forgave her.

But to do what Koenma was asking, holding close a World Gate... it'd be a challenge. Evvy liked challenges.

She nodded. "I'll do it."

Koenma smiled. "Good. Now, any questions?"

Finn tentatively raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"Sir, why are you a toddler? And what's with the pacifier?"

Koenma turned an interesting shade of red as everyone nodded their agreement to the question. He said in a harsh voice, "Any questions pertaining to the matter at hand?" A pause. "No? Well then, let's get started."

* * *

Please review, even if you don't like it, because then I can't change what you don't like 'cause I won't know about it! That made sense, right? (confused) 


	4. Brave New World

Fourth chapter!

A Note: Just assume that everyone is speaking their proper languages, because Evvy and Finn pretty much know all the major languages and a few minor ones. Same goes for Koenma and his Elite.

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, or, for that matter, Pizza Hut. Sigh If only...

* * *

"What, now?" 

Koenma gave Evvy an annoyed look. "Yes, what better time than the present?"

Evvy bit her lip and looked over a Finn. He seemed a bit pale... he never performed well under pressure. Then again, neither did she.

* * *

The last world the thieves had visited was a vaguely Aztec-looking one, with many bright colored tapestries depicting battles fought and won, but never one lost. Of course, who ever wanted to admit defeat, much less display it? 

The object reported stolen was a suit of ancient armor, said to be able to give the wearer the 'ability to become one with stone and move with it as was water'. It had been the oldest relic these people had, and was a much cherished link to their past.

Finn and Evvy were outside under the a Palm tree, the outlines of its broad leaves etched in silver against the night sky. In the distance the roar of surf could be heard lapping at the hardened rocks and soft sand. The outer beauty and peace of the scene did little to calm their nerves. Finn fidgeted constantly, alternating looking at the white sand they were sitting on, and up at the temple on the hill where the rest of the team along with Koenma's foot soldiers were waiting.

"Well, let's get this over with." Evvy said, by way of telling Finn he couldn't stall anymore.

Sighing and looking as if he'd rather swallow a raw lemon than be put on the spot like this, Finn closed his eyes and squared his shoulders, a frown of determination and concentration on his face. Evvy sat next to him and 'watched' him delve into his own source of power and cast it into the Ether, directing it to run up and through the cloth and strings, powered by his will and determination alone. 'Seeing' it through her own connection with the Ether, Evvy realized that it wouldn't be enough to pick up the subtle vibrations that a World Gate would leave behind.

After a minute Finn's eyes opened and he sighed explosively. "I can't do it sis, I guess they'll just have to find some other way."

Evvy rested a hand on his shoulder. "You know there is no other option Finn. You can do this. Just relax and think about what you need to do, and forget about them up there. I'll help you out."

Finn looked over at her, gratitude in his eyes. "I knew I could count on you, sis."

He closed his eyes again and resumed his posture, but this time Evvy came with him. She used her own power and will and joined it with Finn's, in a way they had discovered only brother and sister could do. Their combined power was more than enough to locate where the portal had been, and where it had gone.

"You got it?" Finn asked in a whisper.

"Yeah..." Evvy stood and dusted the sand off of her jeans. After turning and giving Finn a hand up, they ran back to the temple to relay the news.

Koenma nodded. "Good work Finn. Now, if you'll open a portal to the world in question, my men, Evvy and yourself will go through." He looked at them all gravely. "I'm not sure just who's been causing all these problems, of if they're working alone or with a group, but either way, be careful. And if at all possible, see if you can find out who the mole is. Good luck." With that, he headed back through the World Gate.

Finn paled. "He's not coming?"

Evvy shrugged. "What good would a politician do in a situation like this?"

Finn looked a bit put out. "Well, I thought that if he ruled Spirit World, then he'd have some kind of power..."

The ogre nearest them gave a bark of a laugh and said, "We're his power! Now open the portal, let's get this show on the road."

Finn sighed and straightened. His eyes lost focus as his hands found their way into the Ether. A few seconds later, with a mighty heave, he brought the portal to their physical world.

"You two, stick close to me. We'll be going in last." Said the same ogre.

Evvy and Finn nodded and watched as the thirty-or-so ogres went through the portal, Finn getting paler with each one that crossed through. It put a lot of stress on the person, trying to keep the portal intact as entities other than themselves went through. Luckily, the world they were going to was relatively close by, so Finn was able to stand it, even though he'd probably sleep for a day later.

At last, it was their turn. Evvy, Finn, and their ogre escort stepped through the portal onto grey sand that was strewn about a lush jungle. They followed the ogre platoon through the forest, coming to a stop in a meadow. From here, it was the ogre's scout's jobs to locate the thieves.

Evvy looked over at her brother. "Well, are they here?"

Finn looked like little more than a ghost with his white skin in the pale moonlight. He barely managed to nod.

Evvy frowned. "Finn, what's wrong?"

Finn turned slowly toward her. "Something big is here Evvy, and it scares the crap out of me. Can't you feel it?"

Evvy looked out into the forest and concentrated on the Ether. Gasping suddenly, she stumbled back, trembling.

Finn nodded. "Told you. I don't think these 'elite' are going to stand up to that much power."

Evvy said, "Maybe it's just a local. It doesn't have to be one of the thieves..."

Finn shook his head. "If you look closely, you can see more than just that one power. There are other, lesser ones with it. Any one of them is at least twice as powerful as an elite."

Evvy looked at him. "We're in trouble, huh?"

Finn nodded grimly.


	5. Initiation

AN: Wow! From one review to six! Yay!! Now, to write them back:

Reonari's crazed friend J- Hey J(ennny)! Loved your reviews, they're so funny! Really brightened my day, so mucho gracius! (Is that how you spell the word? o.o)

Suntiger- Thank you for the awsome review! And you know what else is creepy? I'm a Leo too!! Except on leap years, then I'm a Virgo ('cause I was born on the 22 of August). And your poetry is way better than mine! I could never figure out just how to write poetry, so I'll just leave it to the experts, like you! Thanks again! Hope you like this chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, and if I did, I would probably ruin it and have tones of screaming rabid fan girls hiring snipers and asassins to off me and stuff.

* * *

"We have to get out of here." Evvy whispered to her brother. 

Finn nodded. He walked over to their escort and said, "Sir, we have to leave."

The ogre frowned. "Why?"

Finn gulped. "My sister and I, we sense a–"

"Finn!" Evvy shouted out. "They're opening the Gate!"

The ogre commanded, "Do your job! And you, boy, led us to 'em!"

"But sir! You can't fight them! Can't you feel that power? And it's not alone! We've got to get out of here while we can!"

"Kid, just do what you're here for and leave the battle strategy to us! I don't need a scared kid getting in our way."

Finn looked hopelessly over at Evvy. She had fallen to her knees in the sand, her hands in the Ether, with her eyes narrowed to slits. Tears coursing down her cheeks.

The ogre looked alarmed. "What's wrong?"

Finn lost it. He spun around and shouted, his voice ringing through the forest. "She's doing the equivalent of looking into a sun, you stupid soldier! That thief has enough power to blind her, and what's worse, she's trying to hold close a World Gate! What the HELL do you think is wrong with her? Get it through your head, you can't fight who ever's power that is! I'm opening a portal and getting us outta here!"

"There will be no need for that." A voice came through the woods in the direction Evvy was facing. She gasped and fell forward, her hands coming into view as they slammed into the ground.

"They stopped." She panted as she lifted a hand and rubbed at her eyes. "I couldn't see anything but his power." She looked toward the sound of her brother's voice.

Finn's eyes widened. "Sis, your eyes..."

Evvy's usual honey-colored eyes were now an aqua-blue-green color, the whites of her eyes red from broken veins. Finn recalled something both Klaud and Jacob had tried to explain to them. They had said that inevitably, in every unit's career, they met up with a demon, sometimes a powerful one, sometimes one not so powerful but still dangerous. Whether it was from trying to avoid the demon, or lead someone to it, the Gate Keeper had to spend an extended amount of time looking into a demon's power, or as some called it, 'aura'. They used the Ether to do this, and as a result from some strange rule that governed the Ether, their irises were altered. The new eye color depended on the strength of the demon. The more powerful the demon, the more drastic the change in color. However, there was one side effect they failed to mention...

Evvy cried out and clasped her hands over her eyes. "Finn, I can't see!"

A tall demon stepped out of the forest into the meadow, completely ignoring the thirty-odd ogres, his gold eyes focused on the girl crouched before him. He stood almost six feet tall, wore white clothes and had grey-tipped fox ears on his head. A fox's tail swished behind him.

"So, you are the one I've heard so much about." He said, seemingly to himself. "You don't seem all that powerful to me."

Evvy raised her head and opened her eyes. Letting loose a scream of pain she scuttled backward a few feet, her eyes sealed shut again. "Finn..."

Going to his sister, Finn helped her to her feet, supporting her as she leaned on him.

"We're all going to die, aren't we?" Finn asked in a flat voice.

"Don't say that." Evvy said, but not sounding too sure herself.

"Do not fear for you lives, I have no intention of killing you two. Tonight, at least." The fox said, stepping closer to them.

"Please," Evvy said in a small voice. "Could you tone it down a bit?"

The demon's fox ears flicked. "What do you mean?"

"Your power, it's literally blinding."

The demon fox looked both thoughtful and smug. "You can actually see my power?"

"It's all I can see, and it's ruining my eyes."

"Keep them shut then. I will return in a moment." Turning away from them, the fox faced the group of ogres, who had been watching in astonished silence. Seeing that his attention was focused on them was too much for a few of the ogres. With cries of fear, and one voice shouting, "It's Youko!", three in the back of the group broke off and ran towards the forest, in the direction of the portal. As soon as they were out of sight in the woods, the noise of ripping flesh sounded out, accompanied by guttural cries cut suddenly short.

Three demons stepped in the clearing, each holding an ogre's head aloft and grinning sadistically. "What poor excuses for soldiers Koenma employs these days." Lazily remarked the one in the middle, a dog demon with Doberman ears and deep-set eyes.

The ogres grouped together. Evvy and Finn's former escort said in a frightened voice that feigned authority, "You are all under arrest, under decree of Koenma for the illegal theft of ancient artifacts."

Voices erupted in laughter all around the clearing, and as the owners of the mocking voices came into view, it was quickly evident that the ogres and the two units were surrounded by demons.

Evvy counted over a dozen different voices, none of them pleasant. "Finn?"

He shook his head. "I couldn't see around that one guy's power. I think he was hiding them from us."

Evvy gulped. "How does he know so much about our powers? And about us?"

The silver-haired fox demon looked over his shoulder at her, simultaneously lowering his power. "Excellent question. If you will join us?" The last seemed directed out into the forest.

And into view stepped Max, a look of misery on his normally stoic face, his true black eyes firmly fixed on the ground.

"Max?" Said Finn, shock evident in his voice.

Evvy gave a small gasp.

Youko turned toward them and smiled. "Max has been most informative, on a matter a subjects. Tell me, Evvy, what is even better than being able to go anywhere at anytime, to do whatever you will?"

Evvy shuddered. "To know you can't be stopped."

"Which is where you and your brother come in. Koenma was very foolish to deliver to me the only two Gate Keepers capable of tracing me and cutting off any chance of my escape." His smile grew. "And now you both work for me."

Evvy drew away from her brother and straitened to her full five feet five inches. She defiantly opened her new-colored eyes and ignoring the pain said in a firm voice, "No chance in hell."

This seemed to amuse the demon fox. "Rile, Rubus, if you would."

The two demons nearest Finn and Evvy came forward and roughly grabbed them, forcing their hands behind their backs. Finn tried to wrench away, but Evvy knew it was no use. Even if they could get away from these two, there were tones more lesser demons, not to mention the ring-leader to deal with.

Said ring-leader came toward them, one of his clawed hands reaching into a pouch on his waist. He pulled out two tiny seeds, each no bigger than a baby's fingernail. "These seeds are of a special kind. Grown under and filled with my energy, they do my bidding."

Evvy briefly wondered if this guy was nuts, but shoved the thought aside. Crazy or not, he was in control of super-strong criminals and should be taken very seriously, even if he was talking about plants at a time like this.

Evvy and Finn's captors spun them around, their backs now to the fox. Rile roughly grabbed a handful of Evvy's hair and pulled her head forward, exposing the back of her neck. Rubus did the same to Finn. The demon fox came up behind them and placed each of the seeds at the base of their necks..A sharp stinging, like acid, made itself felt as the seeds melted their way into the poor unit's necks. However, neither Finn or his sister cried out, refusing to give these creeps the satisfaction

"Do not worry, the stinging will subside, once the mind-searing pain kicks in." Youko said, his tone casual.

And kick in it did. Though the seeds had looked small, they still left a sizable hole. To Evvy, it felt as if a hot coal was burning itself through her. Blood trickled down their backs, a line of liquid heat.

'Finn was right.' Evvy thought. 'We are going to die. Just much slower than I thought.'

Then, all of a sudden, the pain subsided and their blood stopped flowing. An incredible itching had taken over, and Evvy correctly identified it as their muscle and skin growing back at an accelerated rate. The two demons abruptly released their hold on Evvy and Finn, allowing them to sink to the ground.

"Welcome to the team." Youko said.

Evvy gasped and stood up, a bit wobbly. Turning and facing him, rage on her face, she practicaly screamed at him, "What the hell was that?!"

The fox smirked and said, "Your initiation. All of my underlings undergo it. It is how I assure their cooperation."

Max chose then to speak up. "I'm so sorry Evvy, Finn, he did it to me... you have no idea what he can do."

"Yes, perhaps it is time I showed them. Just to discourage disobedience." He suddenly turned to one of the demons in the circle. It was a crow demon, with oily black wings and black markings. The crow demon suddenly looked nervous.

Youko narrowed his eyes and suddenly, just as his aura flared, the demon's head suddenly exploded in gore; bone, meat and gushier things raining down. A plant with thick thorn-filled vines was sprouting from his stump of a neck. Evvy was spared the sight because of her new blindness. Finn, however, got the front row view. He scuttled off to one side of the meadow and threw up explosively, hacking and crying. Evvy heard her brother, and the wet plopping as the crow demon parts landed, and the thud of the fallen body. She guessed what had happened, but was saved from throwing up by the mere lack of food in her stomach.

"I can do that no matter where you are, or what world you are in. Do not disobey me." Youko's voice was heartless. "If either of you want to see sunrise, you will do exactly as I say."

* * *

Well, that's it 'till next week. Have fun, y'all! 


	6. Saving Blood

Hello again! These week are just flying by, aren't they? ;p But not nearly fast enough... I want Spring Break!!!

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, or the school district, but oh the fun I could have if I did... (evil smile).

* * *

"First..." Youko said. 

He must have given some unseen signal, because the other demons suddenly leapt into action, tearing into the ogres. Finn, in shock, was still crouched off on to the side. Evvy made her unsteady way to him, desperately trying to block out the sound of tearing flesh and gnashing teeth. Kneeling down, she wrapped an arm around Finn's shoulders, trying to stop his shaking.

Max came over and knelt in front of them. "I..." He paused, a hopeless expression on his face. "I'm so sorry." He finally said.

Finn stopped shaking, stopped any movement at all and grew very quite. Then he slowly looked up at Max. "You coward." His voice seethed with barley suppressed rage. "You heartless bastard."

Evvy had never heard her brother's voice so cold. "Finn..." She started to say. "No one ever wants to die..."

"Don't Evvy. He doesn't deserve your compassion." Finn spat out the last word, Max flinching at the acid sound.

"I s-swear to you. I didn't know this would happen." Max's voice cracked. "I want you to know, I'll never forgive myself for this, but please u-unders-stand," He was visibly trembling now. "I never would have done it if I'd known..."

Finn rose suddenly. He stood towering over Max. "Yes, you would have."

"Too true." A new voice joined in. Youko had come up behind them. Finn didn't even bother to turn. He was too angry with the monster in front of him to pay attention to the one behind.

"A coward like you, though useful, deserves punishment." The kitsune smiled coldly. "Therefore, I will not kill you. Much better to let you live, knowing what you've done. Better yet, you will be the one to explain to Koenma just what happened to his precious Gate Keepers."

Evvy, standing, turned the silver-haired bandit. "It will never work. One day, we'll open a portal and dump you in a lava field, or an arctic wasteland. Or you'll die at the hands of one of your many enemies after we deliver you to them. It doesn't matter. One way or another, you'll die, and we'll all be free."

Youko smiled. "Then perhaps it would be best for you to know that as soon as I die, every seed will burst to life, killing the ones who betrayed me." His smile grew. "Along with everyone else who has been implanted."

Evvy grit her teeth, fists clenched. There had to be a way out of this. She would rather die than betray those she knew and loved by helping this demon. She would just simply refuse to help him, and if he killed her, then so be it. Then her thoughts turned to Max. Surely he had felt the same way? And wasn't he older, and stronger than her? Would she really be able to just kill herself that way?

'No.' She thought suddenly. 'I couldn't do it for myself, I'm too weak.' She glanced back to her brother. 'But I can do it for Finn.'

"I want you to let Finn return with Max to Spirit World." She said, her voice unwavering.

There was a shocked moment of silence, Finn twisting his head around to look at his sister, confusion on his face.

"And if I won't allow it?" Youko said, surprised with her forwardness despite himself.

"Then I'll force you to kill me. I won't do anything you say." She looked at Finn, trying to fill her blind eyes with the one message that had gotten them through life together. The same look she had given him on their first job together- the same look she'd given him when Dad had died and they stood together at his funeral; the same look she'd given him when Mom had started to drink and at times had forgotten about them- Trust me. I won't let anything happen to you.

Youko's cold gaze rested on her, and though she couldn't see it, Evvy shivered slightly anyway. "And if I just killed your brother instead?"

"Fine. Better he die than lose his soul working for a monster like you."

"Very well then. As you wish." Youko's head turned toward Finn.

"But know this." Evvy said, slightly panicked that he had seen so easily through her bluff. "Without my brother, I have nothing to live for. I don't need you to go through a portal to kill you. I can simply open one over your head, or beneath you feet. Or inside you."

Youko slowly tuned back to her, his gaze examining her blank, blind eyes. Discovering what he had been looking for there, he sneered slightly. "There is nothing more truly nauseating than the overly-righteous. Fine. Your brother will accompany the coward back to Spirit World. As for you..."

As sudden, searing pain shot up Evvy's neck and filled her head, making it feel as if it was going to explode. Screaming in pure agony, she fell back to her knees and onto her side, clawing at her head. She swore she felt her skull cracking with the pressure! It was too much, far too much! She'd either die or go insane from the pain. And suddenly, it stopped as she fell into unconsciousness.

"Let that be a lesson to you, wench." Youko's voice was still cold, but anger boiled beneath the calm veneer. "You!" He said, turning to a seven-foot tall bear demon. "Collect her. We're leaving." And with that, he strode off into the forest, his cronies following him. The bear demon came over to Evvy, and surprisingly gentle, picked her up in his arms, his curved claws sheathed. He waited until the other demons had gone after their leader, then he turned to Finn.

"I was forced into this mess myself, forced to leave my wife and children. I'll try to look after her for you. And please..." The demon's round ears slid down and flattened themselves. "Talk to Koenma. See if you can find a way out of this." With that, he turned and left, striding into the forest. The last view Finn had of his beloved sister was her cradled child-like in a demon's arms.

* * *

So that's it. Sorry for the shortness. And once again, if you feel so inclined, please review!  



	7. Brom

Another chapter! Sorry about the lateness of this one, but the stupid science fair got in the way, and I succesfully did my entire project in a single weekend and even managed to make it look profesional! Yay! I got a 95 out of 100! Now I just hope my science teacher never reads this... (sweatdrop) 

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, or Harry Potter, because if I owned the latter, I'd immediatly perchase the former. :P

* * *

Evvy's eyes slowly opened. 'How strange. The sky's bending in...' Blinking several times she finally realized that it was not the sky she was looking at, but the ceiling of a sagging tent. Her heart rate shooting through the roof, Evvy was reminded of something her mother once said, 'There is nothing scarier than waking up and not knowing where you are.' Evvy now knew what her mother had meant and agreed completely. 

'Okay girl, calm down and up with ya.' She thought stubbornly to herself, but try as she might, her body just wouldn't move. 'Gah! Hell with it!' She thought, stopping her straining and instead trying to remember just how she had come to be in this tent. Filtering back though her memories, her head gave a resounding throb. 'Ugh, what hit me last night? Did Finn talk me into more beer again? No, he swore not to after that karaoke incident...' She winced. 'At least I remember that.'

A clang sounded outside, the ringing sound of metal striking metal easily penetrating the tent walls and Evvy's tender ears. A second later, another clang sounded, and another and another. 'Blast it all! I have possibly the worst hangover in the history of alcohol, and someone is building a RAILROAD outside my tent!' The oh-so-savory thought of giving the offending clanger a piece of her mind finally propelled Evvy off of the mat she'd been lying on and to the flap of her black tent.

"Stop that infernal racket already! Go build your railroad elsewhere!" She shouted as she ducked into the light of day. The white light pierced her eyelids, causing her to clap her hands over her eyes. "And someone turn down the sun!"

Hearty guffawing drew Evvy to risk cracking open an eyelid and peeking out between her palms, only to see three muscular demons working at an open fire, a white-hot piece of metal laying on an anvil before them. It appeared they'd been in the process of shaping a sword of some kind before Evvy had interrupted them. But not to be distracted from work for too long, two of the demons returned to striking the metal with their heavy hammers, one still shaking his head in amusement. The third, a bear demon, came towards her.

"Are you alright? I know the initiation can be disorienting for some demons, for a human it must be terrible." He said.

Evvy frowned as she slowly backed away from him. "Initiation?" Then it hit her. Everything came rushing back, leaving her feeling like she'd been hit with one of the demon's hammers. 'Wait a minute... I can see again!' Overjoyed as she was, her face still showed her mistrust of the demon before her.

The bear's black eyes were kind as he replied, "Yes, do you remember?"

Evvy nodded distantly.

He nodded, seemingly to himself, then suddenly clapped her on the shoulder with what was probably a gentle tap to him but that made her knees buckle all the same. "Come! You are most likely hungry after your long rest. I'll show you to the mess tent." And with that he set off down the rows of black tents, and, after the shocked moment it took Evvy to realize the demon hadn't meant to kill her with his sudden move, set out after him.

Glancing about her, Evvy was amazed with the enormity of the camp. Some demons were out and about, but they paid Evvy and the bear no mind. There weren't enough demons around to account for all the tents there were though, and boy were there a lot of tents. All she could see between the tents were more tents, rows upon rows of them stretching up a hill. And on the hill... a black spired castle that challenged the very heavens for their space in the skies. "Wow..."

The bear glanced back at her, and seeing where her gaze was directed helpfully said, "That is where Youko and those closest to him live. It's also where he stores all the treasures we steal."

"Just how many of you are there?" Evvy asked, eyes still exploring the intricacy of the black spires and turrets as they continued walking.

"About six hundred of us out here, and four others besides Youko in the castle."

"You mean in all that space there's only five people!" Evvy asked, shocked. What a waste, to keep everyone else outside in a tent!

The bear shrugged his massive shoulders. "Personally, you couldn't pay me to live up there, that close to him." He shuddered, but continued conversationally, "There used to be six up there, you know. Youko's closest partner and probably the only one who hadn't ever undergone the initiation died two years ago. His name was Kuronue." After a pause the bear added with a chuckle, "He was also probably the only one who could jest openly with Youko and not get his head chopped off."

"Hmm." Evvy made a non-commental noise, not quite sure what to say to that.

They finally reached the mess, a huge brown tent that looked more permanent than the other black ones around it.

Stopping outside it, the bear turned to her. "Here's the mess. Just go on in and grab whatever looks good, and try not to get into trouble. The boss has placed his protection over you, but I wouldn't test my luck."

Evvy nodded. "No problem. I'll just find a nice corner to hide in. I have a question though..."

The bears ears perked, as if to say he was listening.

"You seem, well, you're not what I was expecting." Evvy finally said. At the puzzled look she added, "I mean, you're, erm, too nice for a demon." Shrugging helplessly, she asked, "Why are you here?"

The bear, seeming to suddenly understand what Evvy was getting at slowly explained, "Some of us were forced to join Youko's ranks, as you and I were. But some came willingly, seeking fame and fortune. All undergo the initiation. Youko may be a heartless bastard, but he lives up to the reputation of a fox. He takes no chances."

Evvy stood there, the last of her migraine ebbing away in face of the shock now washing over her. "You were forced into it like me? But I thought-"

"You thought all demons were monsters?" The bear supplied, not unkindly. "I know we don't have a very good reputation among humans, but a few species of demons, like bears, simply want to be left alone."

Evvy nodded. "That makes sense... but why you? I-If you don't mind me asking?"

He smiled. "Because of my strength. Bears are naturally strong, but I am the strongest of all." He said it, pride evident in his voice, but it was obvious he wasn't trying to brag. Then his face fell. "But of course, that's what landed me in this mess, away from my mate and cubs."

Evvy's voice was soft and full of sympathy as she responded. "You had a family?"

The bear nodded. "But so did you."

Evvy shrugged. "Finn doesn't need me for much, and Mom doesn't even realize she has kids half the time."

"And of your sire?"

Evvy blinked. Sire? Oh yeah... "He died when I was little."

The bear shook his great head, kindness in his black eyes.

Uncomfortable, Evvy said, "If you don't mind, I think I'll go find that corner now."

The bear chuckled. "By the way, my name is Brom. I have to go back to the smithery, but if you see me around, don't hesitate to say hello." And with that, he turned back the way they came. As Evvy watched him go, she thought the Brom bore a striking resemblance to what she had imagined Hagrid in the Harry Potter books would look like. And they were alike also in that their scary looks belied a kind heart.

Shaking her head at all that had happened to her the past two days, Evvy stepped into the warm tent. It was sparsely lighted, mostly with candelabra on the wooden tables that were arranged in a circle pattern around a large buffet-style counter that sat in the center of the tent. Evvy picked her way through the tables, ignoring the few demons that were there and likewise being ignored. Arriving at the buffet, Evvy was surprised to see that there were many foods she was familiar with, American dishes and Japanese alike. There were foods from different places around the world, and also a few that didn't look like a human would be able to digest them.

Grabbing a clay plate, Evvy helped herself to some bacon and cheese, vaguely wondering what there was to drink. But too hungry to really care, she sat herself at the first table she came to and dug in.

As she ate, Evvy pondered the sudden return of her sight. 'My eyes don't even twinge.' She thought, puzzled. 'Jacob never told me and Finn about going blind when looking into a demon's aura... is it possible that only a really powerful demon can do that?' She gave a mental shrug. 'Oh well. Mine is not to wonder why, just be grateful for. Though I wonder what will happen the next time I look into his aura...'


	8. Settling In

Whew! Sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out! To make it up to you, this chapter is my longest yet! 8 pages, woot! ... Yes, I know I'm pathetic.

The review responses for the last chapter are on my bio page, and the responses for this chapter are right here.

**TPM-girl** - Glad you like him! But ah, don't get too attached.

**la la la**- Thank you! I was so worried I wouldn't get his character right, and I'm still worried that I won't make his character development believable! Let me know how I'm doing, m'kay?

**Princess Kandra**- Here ya go! Hope you enjoy the chappie, and thanks for the review!

**Alihorn**- Thank you for the reviews!

**Arekisu**- Thanks for R&Ring my story! And now that I've updated, will you update your story? Please?

Discaimer: I don't own YYH, but not for lack of trying.

* * *

Evvy was still happily munching away on cheese, confident that Koenma would be mounting a rescue any time soon, when a long, low horn blast sounded. Startled, she looked up to find that the demons were leaving the mess tent. 'Wonder what's up?' She thought, stuffing one last bit of cheese in her mouth before following them outside. 

Looking around, she quickly spotted the towering bulk of Brom as he followed a crowd of about 15 other demons that were heading up the hill towards the castle. Jogging lightly to catch up with Brom, Evvy looked up the hill and saw a figure dressed in a white tunic and pants, with gray-tipped fox ears and a tail. He appeared to be waiting for the crowd to reach him, his pose casual and completely at ease.

When Evvy caught up with Brom, she asked him who the figure was. The great bear demon suppressed a shudder as he answered. "That is none other than Youko Kurama himself."

Evvy felt herself go numb. That was the demon that had taken her from her brother? He looked so... harmless. At least from here he did.

"What's going on?" She asked her companion.

"We're being summoned to a meeting, that's all I know. It's at these meetings that he decides who's going on his newest hunt."

"Where is everyone else then? There's only a few demons here, not six hundred."

"Youko doesn't restrict his followers to the camp. He knows what a bunch of restless demons will do to each other if not kept occupied. You see, every month he requires a sort of tax from each demon. If a demon fails to pay the tax, the seed in his neck slowly applies pain until he does."

"I take it you know from experience." Evvy said softly.

Brom's only answer was a muted growl. They had arrived at the outer edges of the crowd that had gathered around Youko.

Dead silence reigned as the kitsune slowly meandered through the gathering. He'd stop in front of a demon, either nod or shake his head, and then move on. The demons that were dismissed went back down the hill a lot more quickly than they had come up. By the time he reached Evvy and Brom, only two demons had met with his approval. Briefly meeting Brom's eyes, he slowly nodded. Evvy was struck by how strange the scene was. Seven-foot-tall Brom was unconsciously shrinking away from Youko, who was a full foot shorter than him.

Then it was Evvy's turn. "Ah, it seems you're finally awake. I trust you had a good rest?" The silver fox said, almost conversationally.

Evvy's only reply was to glare up at him, meeting his gold eyes with her own turquoise ones.

"Relax girl, I will not be requiring much of you. Simply take us to where we need to go, then follow and keep silent."

Unable to meet that overpowering golden gaze for long, Evvy's eyes fell off to the side, observing that Brom seemed to be holding his breath. Although she was no longer meeting Youko's eyes, her entire being reeked of dissent. Suddenly, two claw tipped fingers where underneath her chin, forcing her face upward.

"Take us here." Youko said, his gaze locking with hers, and as it did a detailed picture of a place with stone canyons and black earth filled her mind. Evvy gasped and stumbled back, utterly confused. The normal way of getting to a world you've never been to was to either have it described to you, or to search for a strand in the Ether that felt unfamiliar. It was a hit and miss operation, usually taking several tries before finding the correct world. But this way, there was no mistaking where Youko wanted to go.

"How did you do that?" She asked, confused and more than a little creeped.

Youko only smiled. "Take us there, now."

Evvy glared at him, resisting the urge to give him a very inappropriate hand gesture. Instead, she broke off their staring contest and tried to do as he said. Tried, because for some reason her hands would not go into the Ether. Evvy frowned and tried again, straining this time. The only reaction was for her hands to glow a brief blue, and then go back to normal. Startled, Evvy looked up at Brom, her expression scared.

"What is taking you, human?" Youko asked, impatient.

"Hold on a sec." Evvy said and sucked in a breath. Something else besides her eyes had changed last night, that was obvious. But Jacob had never mentioned this change, and Evvy had seen him open portals, just like everyone else. Was this another side effect of being so near to Youko's overwhelming power? His aura was currently dampened, but she could sense the power roiling beneath the surface.

Evvy let out her breath slowly, counting down from 8. Closing her eyes, Evvy went through the motions of opening a portal. She found the strands in the Ether, wrapped them into a circle, and... Evvy opened her eyes, and in front of her was a glowing blue hoop that showed gray stone walls and an endless expanse of dirt underneath a dark sky with no moon. This wasn't right. You weren't supposed to be able to see what lay on the other side of the portal, just the swirling blue vortex. Even stranger, around the edges of the blue hoop were lines that expanded a little way from the portal before disappearing. It seemed that instead of Evvy having to go into the Ether, the Ether had come to her.

"Girl, explain this." Youko's harsh voice cut into Evvy's thoughts.

"I have a name you know. As for this, there's no use getting angry at me for it. It's your fault."

Brom's harsh exhalation was the only warning Evvy got. Suddenly she was airborne, flying back from her portal before landing none to softly on the sloping hill, ten feet away. The hard crash made her black out for a second, and it was Youko's furious voice that snapped her out of it.

"You will not speak to me in that insolent manner, do you understand me you foolish wench?" He voice was seething.

Evvy moaned and raised herself up on her elbows, tasting blood in her mouth. Being stupid, she replied, "Calm down, it wasn't meant as an insult. It's because of your power that mine's changed so much."

And then the kitsune was towering over her, not a sound had been made to give Evvy a warning of his lightning fast approach. She craned her neck back to look up at him, squinting her eyes against the glare of the sun.

"Explain." Was his ice cold command.

Evvy sighed and painfully climbed to her feet. If it wasn't for the insurance of being Youko's only Gate Keeper, she would have been quaking in fear. As it was she calmly brushed herself off as she said, "I don't think I can. All I know is that the only significant thing that happened between now and the last time I opened a portal is being blinded by your aura. It's the only explanation: your aura somehow messed with mine."

Youko sneered. "Impossible. It is well known that a being's ki is his own, unchanged through any happenstance."

Evvy shrugged. "You have a better idea?"

Youko tensed suddenly and Evvy jumped back, preparing for another blow that never came.

"No." He said, quietly. There was utter silence for a moment before Youko turned to Brom. "You will make sure she does not get in our way. The two of you will go through last, but do not lag behind." And with that he walked back over and strode through the portal, the other two demons right behind him.

Brom came up to Evvy and there was certain awe in his voice. "I don't think I've ever heard Youko admit he didn't know something."

"I don't think anyone's ever tried bleeding for the privilege." Evvy remarked as she led the way to her portal.

* * *

An hour later saw them all in the other world. Youko was leading them single-file, lightning fast pace set. Directly behind him was a snake demon. The snake had green hair and eyes, with lightly patterned skin that resembled scales. Behind him was a Doberman demon, the same one from last night although Evvy didn't know it. And lastly came Brom, Evvy riding him piggy-back style. 

'How do I get myself into these situations?' She wondered wildly, her face pressed into Brom's broad back. She could feel the wind whipping around her, having no doubt that if it weren't for the tight bun she always wore it in, her hair would be stinging her cheeks something awful. Her arms ached from holding on so tightly to Brom. She was afraid that if she somehow slipped from his back now at this speed, the fall would kill her.

Finally, their frantic pace slowed enough for Brom to let Evvy off his back. She stumbled as she dismounted, her legs having trouble supporting her weight after being in such a cramped position for so long. Youko shot her a look that plainly said 'Be quite or else.' Once again resisting the urge to flick him off, Evvy turned her attention to their surroundings. The black dirt had given way to sand, and they stood in the shadow of a large dune. Youko was climbing it, his footsteps measured, as if he were counting them. The snake and dog demons were following in his footsteps exactly, taking great care to step only on the sand he had already disturbed. Brom followed suit, and Evvy figured that, strange as it looked, there must be a reason for their cautious steps. So, shrugging to herself, she followed Brom, her own feet lost in his huge tracks. They crested the hill, Youko not even stopping before he began his descent. But when it was Evvy's turn, she paused and took a good look around. There were endless dunes and starry skies everywhere, but in the distance was what appeared to be a stone box. 'Some kind of fortress?' Evvy thought, squinting slightly. It was hard to judge distances here. 'Guess I'll find out.' Youko seemed to be headed for right for it, though his gaze was on the ground. Realizing she was lagging behind, Evvy hurried down the hill, still carful to step in Brom's footprints.

Suddenly, her foot slipped out from under her and she was headed for the ground. A scant few inches short of hitting, she was brought up short by Brom's strong hand on her upper arm. Looking up and about to thank him, Evvy's words were lost as she noticed that Brom was breathing very hard, his eyes terrified. He carefully set her on her feet before motioning to the ground with one hand. He made a fist and suddenly opened it. He repeated the gesture, pointing to the ground. Evvy looked up and mouthed, "Mine field?" Brom nodded tugged his ear. It took Evvy a second to work that one out. Then, "Sound sensitive?" she mouthed again. Brom once again nodded the affirmative before turning back and beginning to walk again.

'Oh...' Now she was scared. Much more cautiously, Evvy walked after him.

They had been walking for about an hour now, and the stone box hadn't seemed to get any closer. They had fallen into a rhythm, each of them no more or less than three steps behind the person in front of him or her. Every so often, Youko would take a 90 degree turn and go in that direction for awhile before turning back towards their destination. Evvy was in a kind of trance, their steady pace putting her in a light meditative state. All she had done for the past hour was step, step, check where Youko was headed, step, step, check, step, step, check.

When they finally arrived at the stone object, Evvy very nearly ran into Brom. Stumbling to a stop, she looked up and tiredly rubbed her eyes. When she looked again, she saw that Youko and the two other demons were examining the stone box. Now that they were right next to it, Evvy could see that it was about three feet high but about twenty feet in length and width. It was made out of the same gray stone as the canyon walls that now seemed a thousand miles away. It was dotted with hieroglyphs at odd intervals on its surface. Youko was running his hands lightly over it, possibly looking for a trigger. When that didn't work, he took a seed out of the pouch at his waist. He closed his hand around it, and Evvy saw a brief flare in his power before vines extending out of his fist, dropping down onto the box and growing across it. Evvy watched in amazement. She could see Youko's energy guiding the plant over the stone, and she could hear the plant grow. It sounded a bit like stretching fabric, only louder.

The tendrils grew until they covered every square inch of the stone. Youko frowned and withdrew them. He tilted his face up and slightly to the side. Evvy realized he was smelling something. He was silent for another moment before saying, "You may speak."

The dog immediately started chattering, "Seems like an easy take Master. No traps other than the mines and no guards to speak of. I suppose Higyou could melt it easily enough, or Brom could smash it open."

Youko shook his head. "We will not risk damaging the prize that way." He looked over at Evvy. "Well human, what do you make of it?"

She jumped slightly. "Me? Um..." She slowly walked over to the large slab, staring down at it. The symbols or hieroglyphs didn't seem to be arranged in any pattern she could see. The marks themselves were raised slightly off the surface, as if the cover had been created in a mold. Thin lines joined certain symbols into small groups. Evvy stared at them for a long moment, feeling stupid. How did he expect her to solve this? She glanced up and saw Youko watching her. That insufferably smug smile was back on his face, plainly saying that he didn't expect her to solve it at all. Evvy felt her rage ignite. So that was his game, was it? Well, she'd show him. She did enjoy a challenge...

Evvy returned her gaze to the stone, determined to find some sort of clue. She walked around it clockwise. Still no ideas. She walked around it the other way, and stopped suddenly. A group of symbols had reminded her of something... what was it? She puzzled over it for a second before sighing and looking upwards, rubbing her neck. She scanned the sky, letting her mind wander. Then, her gaze locked on a section of the sky. 'That's it!' She thought, excited. She looked around the sky again. "Got it." She said happily. Looking back down at the slab, she carefully examined it before walking over and standing next to Youko. Then, she reached forward and started pushing certain symbols in a group. Whatever symbol she touched glowed a faint white light and lowered itself into the stone. Suddenly, with a slight rumble, a section of the slab slid away to reveal a small, dark cubby-hole.

Not even looking at Evvy, Youko stuck his hand into the hole and pulled out a glass bottle. Inside the bottle a glowing white liquid sloshed around, even though Youko wasn't jostling it.

"How did you do that?" The snake, Higyou, asked Evvy.

She smiled proudly and explained, "The symbols represent constellations; all we needed to do was put in the right one." She pointed upward. A constellation hung directly over the slab that was the same shape as the group of symbols Evvy had used to open the box.

"Come, we've wasted enough time." Youko said as he tucked the bottle into his pouch. He stalked off in the direction they had come.

Higyou and Ha immediately followed the kitsune, but as Brom came by he thumped Evvy on the back. "Nice job." He said, beaming down at her.

She smiled gratefully up at him before they turned and followed the thieves into the sands.

* * *

By the time they returned to Youko's home, night had fallen. The Thief King immediately disappeared up to his castle, Brom and the other demons went to their own tents, leaving Evvy to wander around and explore. 

'Brom said Youko doesn't restrict his people to camp... I wonder...' Evvy paused in between rows of tents and tried to open a portal, but before she could weave her hand full of strands into a hoop a searing pain arched up and down her spine. She immediately let go of the Ether and clawed at her back. "Damn." She swore, rubbing the small scar Youko's seed had left on her neck. She stopped and sighed. 'Guess that means I'll have to find something else to do.' Even after the five hour excursion, she wasn't very tired. Evvy didn't know how long she'd been asleep, but it must have been for quite awhile. Looking around, she spotted the edge of the camp and headed for it. Beyond the tents a forest stretched away, the trees gently tossing their leaves in the wind. 'Looks peaceful.' Evvy thought happily and headed toward it.

A path led away from the camp, and Evvy followed it. She wasn't concerned about getting lost; if worse came to worse, she would just use the Ether to find her way back. She walked for a few minutes, pleasantly thinking about nothing. She spotted an open meadow a ways off the path and made for it. It was small as meadows go, but quite and sufficiently isolated. Evvy sat down underneath a towering tree that looked something like an oak. She looked up through the branches at the large moon and, not recognizing this foreign heavenly body, felt a wave of homesickness sweep through her. 'You never think too much about it, but you get used to seeing the same thing in the sky night after night. There's no Apollo up there, no American flag, no lunar landers... just dust, undisturbed by the people of this world.' She suddenly shook her head viciously. 'Stop it! You're making it worse! Koenma will come any day now.' All was silent for a moment. 'At least, I hope so.'

Evvy sighed and leaned back until she was laying down, her head resting on a root that had mistakenly found its way to the surface of the dirt. Staring straight up, she tried not to think about her home, instead focusing on the patterns the leaves made as the wind pushed through them. A particularly strong gust snapped a leaf off its branch, causing it to twirl down through the air to land directly on Evvy's face. Annoyed, she blew it into the air, only to have it twirl straight down again. Amused now, Evvy made a game out of it. She blew and kept the leaf in the air, stopping it before it landed on her face and keeping it over her. She let out a strong breath and watched the leaf shoot into the air. Suddenly, the leaf stopped it's lazy way down. It just hung there in the air. 'Huh?'

Evvy sat up, eyeing the leaf suspiciously. It was eye level and just hanging there, frozen. She reached forward and waved her hand over and under it. No strings. "How's this possible?" She asked no one and nearly jumped out of her skin when she got an answer.

"Because I will it so." A voice she didn't recognize said. Spinning around and quickly jumping to her feet, Evvy faced the new comer. He was taller than her, but shorter than Youko. He had platinum-blond hair with white markings on his face and arms. Amused gray eyes regarded her.

"Relax. I'm not going to hurt you. I simply wanted to see Youko's newest recruit myself. I must say, you are not what I expected."

"Is that so?" Evvy asked suspiciously.

The demon nodded. "I didn't expect you to be so young. Or so..." he walked over to her, using slow steps. He didn't finish his sentence, merely continuing to stare at her.

"What?" She asked, nervous.

"Hmmm." He locked eyes with her. "Yes, I can see why he chose you." He gave a slight laugh. "Please, excuse my forwardness. My name is Kaze, I am a Jinn of the Wind. I have worked with Youko for nearly three hundred years."

Evvy's jaw dropped, prompting a laugh from Kaze. Abashed, Evvy closed her mouth and asked, "Just how long do demons live for?"

Kaze smiled. "A demon will live forever, if not struck down in battle or by disease."

Evvy blinked rapidly. 'Live forever? That's got to get boring...' What she said aloud was, "How old are you?"

A hint of playfulness touched Kaze's face. "It is said a demon's strength can be measured by his years. I am seven hundred, and one of the most powerful Jinns to ever live."

"Uh-huh." Evvy said, skeptical. A thought struck her. "Hey, how old is Youko?"

Kaze blinked. "No one knows. He keeps himself to himself mostly. The only one to ever get him to open up was his old partner, Kuronue."

"Yeah, I heard about him. Who was he, exactly?"

"He was a bat demon, one of many years. He was known for his love of sake, practical jokes, and above all: a curiosity to rival that of the Master Kitsune." "What happened to him? I know he died awhile ago, but how?" Evvy asked, wondering briefly just how Kuronue managed to get that glacier of a youkai to 'open up'.

Kaze's jaunty smile faded. "I was there the night he died. I'm not sure what exactly happened, but please, sit and I will tell you what I know."

The both of them sat cross-legged across from each other. The jinn removed a spear from where it had been clipped at his back and laid it across his knees. Evvy eyed it nervously as Kaze began his tale.

"It was during the escape that Kuronue was caught. We had raided one of the more well-guarded castles and no one, not even Youko, thought that there would be even more defenses laid outside, across our escape rout. But there were, and Kuronue, in an effort to doge a spirit orb that had come at him, stumbled right into one. Youko was the only one nearby at the time, and at the exact distance away that it would take him too long to go to Kuronue's aid. The trap itself had speared the Bat Demon with poisoned bamboo, and the guards were approaching fast." Kaze sighed, his eyes closed. "Youko left Kuronue there, still alive and conscious. I don't know if he called out anything to Youko, for the Master wouldn't tell us anything beyond the bare facts of Kuronue's death."

"Poor guy..." Evvy said, and then was immediately appalled. 'Wait a minute, I'm sad for Kuronue here, right?' Was she really feeling bad for her captor?

Kaze nodded and opened his eyes. "No one to this day is a hundred percent sure of what happened to Kuronue. Most believe he died, either in capture or from the poison. But some say that he was too good of a thief to have been ended that way."

"What do you think?" Evvy asked, leaning forward, face intent.

"I'm not sure. I didn't know Kuronue that well. But if I had to choose a side... I'd say that he's still out there, biding his time and looking for revenge."

Evvy shook her head. "I don't think so. If Kuronue and Youko were as close as everyone says, then he would understand Youko's choice."

Kaze smiled, but this time his smile was as cold as the arctic winds. "Then I'm afraid you do not know our kind very well."

Later on, Evvy was headed back to camp, Kaze walking beside her. Evvy's hands were clasped behind her back, a position Finn had dubbed her 'Deep Thought Pose'.

She spoke up suddenly. "Kaze, one more question."

"Yes?" Kaze said, leveling his cool gaze on her.

Evvy slowly turned to him, her expression grave. "What does Youko think happened to Kuronue?"

Kaze blinked, surprised. "I'm not sure. As I've said, Youko doesn't really make his feelings public."

"But if you had to guess?" Evvy pressed on.

"Then I'd say... he thinks Kuronue is dead. But I also sense that if the bat were still alive, then Youko would accept any punishment Kuronue decided to visit upon him. Including death and dishonor."

Evvy's eyes slid to the side, a frown crossing her face. 'Stupid...'

She suddenly looked back at Kaze, expression light again. "Well, good night. And thanks for the info!"

Kaze smiled and nodded. "I will see you again later, I have no doubt." And he swept off into the night wind, not a blade of grass bending in his passage.

Evvy smiled as well. 'Well, you've certainly given me a lot to think about.'

* * *

So... does my description of Kuronue remind you of anyone? 

A note here: Sorry if I got the story of Kuronue's death wrong, I only saw the movie once and it was awhile ago. And if it is wrong, I'm afraid I'm gonna have to apply poetic lisence and keep it this way. It's important to the story!


End file.
